


See Something, Say Something

by AlwaysLera



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Gen, I Don't Even Know, Team Feels, Team Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-13
Updated: 2013-01-14
Packaged: 2017-11-25 10:03:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/637726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlwaysLera/pseuds/AlwaysLera
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This started as a 5+1 fic. But then everyone had good feedback about the first chapter and I wanted to know more too...so this mostly became a Darcy Puts Her Nose Where It Doesn't Belong (In Clint's Most Important Secret) fic ;) </p><p>Mostly, I loved Sarea's <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/463529">The Observable Universe</a> and wanted to play off it a bit. Her Darcy heavily influenced mine, as did the wine drinking.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Observable Universe](https://archiveofourown.org/works/463529) by [Sarea Okelani (sarea)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarea/pseuds/Sarea%20Okelani). 



Darcy frowned, stopped in her steps, and then backed up, staring through the window anyways. She studied what she saw quizzically, and then ducked her head, pulled her hat down over her brow, and hurried back to the Avengers Tower as fast as she could.

            “Are you sure?” asked Pepper, frowning as she helped Darcy unpack her groceries into the team’s fridge on the main shared floor. “That doesn’t seem like Clint at all.”

            Darcy shook her head. “I know what I saw, Pep. He was definitely out for drinks with another woman. This woman did not have red hair and was _young_.”

            “Maybe it’s a friend of his?” asked Pepper but even she was shaking her head. “No, he doesn’t do many friends does he, not like that.”

            Darcy sat down heavily on a bar stool. “Why aren’t he and Natasha a thing again? Remind me why Clint was off limits for me but someone else got to get him?”

            Pepper raised an eyebrow at her, shutting the fridge. She took out wine, two glasses, and poured one for each of them while saying, “Darcy. She might let him go meet up with people and go home with them, but what were the chances she’d let that happen under her own roof?”

            Darcy pouted. Clint was _pretty_ though maybe not as pretty as Steve, but at least Clint _noticed_ her, teased her, talked to her, and was genuinely interested in what she had to say instead of commenting about her language (okay, she did curse a little more than was strictly necessary but she couldn’t help it. Her grandmother always said she had a salty mouth). And besides, dating older men were in. But even Darcy had to admit that Clint’s attention to her was no more than the quiet attention he paid to Pepper and Jane in that it faded the moment Natasha was around. Initially, Darcy thought that the poor guy was chasing after someone who couldn’t care at all about him, but after a couple of weeks, she began to see the way Natasha lit up around Clint, the way her eyes looked for him to appear during group gatherings, if only to save her from her own anti-social behavior. He was the only one who had the right to touch her, from what Darcy could tell. Still, they never appeared more than very good friends. It was confusing as hell.

            But Clint had been at a bar with someone young and pretty with long dark hair in a single braid, and maybe that meant he was on the market?

            Just then, Natasha swung into the kitchen. She gave them both a small smile and opened the fridge, rummaging until she emerged with a pudding cup. She was on her way out of the kitchen when Darcy said to her, “Who’s Clint’s hot date tonight?”

            Natasha’s footsteps faltered _just_ enough to tell Darcy that she had had no idea. The redhaired former assassin-spy turned slowly on her heel, frowning slightly. “Hot date?”

            “Yeah,” Darcy said, trying not to smile at Natasha’s expression which switched rapidly between confusion and hurt before switching onto blank. “I saw him out at The Eagle around the corner. That’s awesome that he’s getting out more.”

            Natasha shrugged. “You’ll have to ask him yourself. He didn’t say anything to me.”

            And she disappeared again. Darcy looked at Pepper and said, “It was definitely a date. He tells her when he is going out to buy bagels.”

            Pepper nodded slightly. “Definitely.”

            So a few hours later, when they were tipsy, and Jane’s joined them, and they’ve brought her up to speed, they were a little more than surprised to see Clint stride up the stairs and into the kitchen, whistling a merry tune. Darcy stared at him with her mouth open until Jane carefully pinched her in the side. Darcy yelped and Clint gave her an amused look over his shoulder when he grabbed a beer, popped it open on the counter, and walked over.

            “Ladies night?” he asked curiously.

            Pepper pointed at the TV. “The Voice.”

            “Blake,” pointed Jane.

            “Adam Levine,” argued Pepper and Darcy at the same time.

            Clint shrugged. “I think this is the point where I’m supposed to say something about Christina Aguilera but blondes really aren’t my type.”

            “Prefer brunettes?” asked Darcy silkily. She realized that described herself so she quickly added, “Tall and willowy?”

            Pepper elbowed her, _hard_ , and Clint gave her a puzzled look. He took a sip of his beer. “You know something I don’t?”

            Darcy was tipsy and she couldn’t be blamed. “I was surprised you didn’t tell us about your date at the Eagle. Seemed like one of those things we could have helped you dress up for.”

            She gave a pointed look to the black tshirt he wore under his jacket. He wore a black tshirt almost constantly.

            To her surprise, Clint’s eyebrows shot up and he laughed. “Seriously, Darcy?”

            She had a sinking feeling. “Uh. Yes?”

            “That was my daughter,” he said after a moment, staring into his beer. “I was twenty and stupid. She just turned twenty one last week. I took her out for a beer. She goes to NYU. Her name is Emily.”

            “Oh shit,” said Darcy weakly.

            Clint shrugged and said, “I don’t talk about her a lot because I don’t want her to be a target by some psychopath I’ve pissed off in the world. SHIELD doesn’t know about her. I’ve worked hard to keep her a secret from everyone.” He paused and amended. “Almost everyone.”

            Darcy looked at Pepper who shook her head. Darcy was on her own. Darcy said carefully, “Now, I only said this because I thought you were on a date and was excited for you. But I may have said something to Natasha about you having a hot date.”

            Clint’s face closed off and he sighed. “Okay.”

            “I’m sorry,” Darcy added hopefully.

            Clint gave her a small smile. “I know. Thanks, ladies. I hope the kid who sang Hallelujah wins.”

            He left the room.

            Darcy moaned into her hand. Pepper consolingly refilled her wine glass. 


	2. Darcy Finds an Opportune Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy can't drop a subject, even one that she's been told to drop. Guy banter ensues. Clint's birthday is coming up. The perfect storm develops for Darcy's plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This started as a 5+1 fic. It stopped because people wanted to know more about Emily, and then I wanted to know more about Emily, so then I started writing nothing but fluff where Darcy wants to know more about this mysterious daughter. Enjoy?

Darcy had become intrigued now by the beautiful laughing girl who was Clint’s daughter. She started at the source, not of the daughter herself, but the only person who could give her direct information about Clint. When Natasha came into breakfast with Steve the next morning, Darcy pounced.

            “Did you know that Clint had a daughter, Natasha?” she asked, offering Natasha the orange juice.

            Natasha shot her a sharp glare. “Of course. And it’s not common knowledge. Please do not walk around saying that. How did _you_ find out?”

            “He’s out of the field. How much damage can it do?” Darcy asked, avoiding the question.

            “It’s her life,” Natasha replied mildly. She poured the orange juice into a glass and handed it to Steve. “We don’t like to mess with that.”

            _We_ , Darcy mouthed to Pepper who smirked where she was making pancakes.

            “You’re a mother?” Steve asked Natasha in disbelief.

            Natasha gave Steve a small smile, one of the only ones she handed out. “Not at all. Clint had a…colorful youth.”

            “Literally, colorful,” Clint said as he entered the kitchen. “I grew up in the circus.”

Darcy watched Natasha’s eyes follow him across the room and she wondered if Clint had told Natasha that he hadn’t actually had a hot date the night before. He stood on his tiptoes, finding his favorite mug, his shirt riding up on his body. Darcy couldn’t help but let her eyes run across the exposed skin. She guiltily glanced at Natasha but then almost couldn’t contain her laughter when she saw Natasha running her eyes over the same patch of skin. Natasha glanced, startled, at Darcy, and then pressed her lips together, her blue eyes lighting up and dancing in a moment of shared amusement. Darcy thought to herself, _The Black Widow and I just checked out the same guy. I can’t even understand my life anymore._

“Did Emily’s mother also grow up in the circus?” asked Darcy innocently.

Clint gave her a sharp look. “I’d rather not discuss her. I should have told you that I did in fact have a hot date.”

“You didn’t?” asked Natasha, answering Darcy’s early unspoken question.

Clint stared at Natasha for a moment too long before going back to the process of making coffee. “I took Em out for drinks last night.”

“Did she like the gift?” asked Natasha, catching up.

Clint smiled. “Yes. Thank you.”

Darcy said, “What’d you get her?”

“Secret,” said Natasha, lifting her eyes to Darcy’s again, the shared moment over. “She’s a secret, Darcy. You cannot put her at risk.”

“Please,” added Clint carefully.

“Does she know what you do, or what you did?” asked Steve.

Clint shrugged. “Same old. Private security abroad. She knows that I’m just training now so I’m staying in New York for the most part except for special missions. She likes that.”

“Clint,” Natasha’s tone was full of warning.

He pressed his lips together. He looked at Darcy and shrugged. “It is dangerous. I need to protect her the best I can.”

“I think it is nice that you keep in touch,” said Steve quietly.

Clint smiled at him. “Thanks.”

Natasha stood up and left, leaving Clint watching her with an unsure expression. Darcy watched him and said softly, “Why is she upset?”

“She worries,” Clint said finally, turning back to his coffee.

Darcy was protective over her friends, sure, and if anyone messed with Jane or Erik, there would be _words_ , but over her friends’ kids? Darcy raised her eyebrows, shrugged and went back to picking out all of the marshmallows in her cereal. Clint took a seat and they ate in a comfortable silence for the rest of the morning.  At the end of breakfast, Tony arrived, looking frazzled and confused, with Bruce on his heels, looking equally confused.

“Where’d she go?” demanded Tony.

“Who?” asked Steve.

“Natasha,” Bruce said with a sigh. “She stole _back_ something that Tony stole from her so he can’t really be too—“

“Look, my house, my rules, I wanted to play with her stuff, she wouldn’t let me so I came up with a different way,” Tony said, glaring at Bruce over his shoulder. He pointed at the other scientist. “You _know_ I can make those bracelets better.”

“Maybe she doesn’t want them better?” suggested Clint, still flipping through a newspaper.

“That’s bullshit. She likes toys. Why else does she keep you around?”

Darcy’s eyes darted over, wide, to Clint who just grinned and leaned back in his chair, looking at Tony. “Drives you bonkers, doesn’t it.”

“ _YES_ ,” said Tony loudly. He paused and frowned. “You’re distracting me.”

And he went out of the room. Pepper and Bruce had some sort of low-toned conversation before she turned the pancake making over to him and followed her deluded partner out of the room.

Bruce sighed and went to pour himself more coffee. “Clint, we’re still on for Friday night?”

“If you insist,” Clint frowned at him.

“What’s Friday night?” Darcy asked, feeling a little left out.

“Clint’s birthday,” Bruce told her, smiling a bit. “He’s a little pissed that we decided to do a guys’ night out.”

Clint looked up at her hopefully. “Save me?”

“It’ll be fun,” Steve said. “How bad could it be?”

Darcy said, “Why not invite everyone?”

Clint shook his head. “That’s not helping, Darc.”

Bruce looked at Steve. “Couldn’t hurt. We haven’t been out as a group in awhile.”

Steve shrugged. “Sure. You want to talk to Tony about it?”

Darcy was starting to get a plan so she hurriedly finished breakfast while the guys were still bickering over the Friday plans. She dumped her bowls in the sink and dashed off to share her plan with Jane and Pepper.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy's a plotbunny.

“This sounds like a terrible idea,” said Jane flatly, glaring at her computer monitor but her words proving that even data that didn’t make sense couldn’t keep Jane from participating in a solid dose of Tower gossip. “He said to leave her alone.”

“Oh honestly, Jane, it’s not like I’m doing anything to her. I am just going to invite her to his birthday party. Come on, she’s his only daughter,” though Darcy paused at that. Once stupid, twice stupid…oh god, there could be more Hawkbabies out there and she— _Darcy, stop_ , she ordered herself. _Focus_. “She should be there.”

“I think if Clint wanted his daughter to be there,” Pepper added slowly, working very hard not to sound condescending but failing utterly, “then he would have invited her.”

“Probably didn’t because Natasha told him to leave her out of things,” Darcy muttered, annoyed. “He does whatever she says.”

“Not true,” said Pepper immediately, her voice pitching high.

“Oh? Spill,” urged Jane, rolling backwards in her chair and putting her glasses on top of her head. “That sounds like a story.”

“No, it isn’t,” Pepper deferred diplomatically. “But just…they’re very complicated.”

“Maybe Natasha’s jealous of his daughter?” suggested Darcy.

“Whatever it is, if it means you’re going to be on the bad sides of two of the world’s greatest assassins, I would suggest that you refrain,” Pepper told her. Jane nodded.

Darcy shook her head. “No, I mean, he only goes on missions when they need a long range shot now or Natasha’s seducing someone. He spends all his time training new SHIELD recruits in New York. I don’t understand why he can’t include her. The chances of someone finding her…”

“Darcy,” Jane said firmly. “This is a bad idea.”

“But brilliant,” Darcy said thoughtfully.

The chances of her finding Clint’s daughter at NYU were minimal. Darcy strongly suspected that Emily didn’t share Clint’s last name. She thought maybe one of his alias had a connection so she used her access as the team’s assistant to cross reference Emily with his alias’ names against NYU’s student database. When that failed, she just hacked NYU’s student database and drew up all of the Emilys who were 21 and attended NYU. She copied that list into a Word document and one by one, looked them up on Facebook.

923 names into the list—no one could say that Darcy wasn’t persistent—she sat back and smiled. “Bingo.”

The picture of the girl—Emily Neal—showed that she was beautiful, willowy, with a quick smile, and long dark hair that hung prettily on either side of her face. Her hometown was Duck’s Creek, Nebraska which sounded like somewhere a circus would stop. Her favorite quotes included Walt Whitman’s “Resist much, obey little” which sounded _exactly_ like she was Hawkeye’s daughter. Darcy went through all her photos—people really didn’t know how to use Facebook’s privacy settings correctly—and found that Emily liked surfing, skiing, and riding horses. All high risk sports. She lived with her maternal grandmother since her mother died when she was young.

Darcy scrolled through the wall and found that Emily was meeting a friend at the Starbucks around the corner the next day at noon.

Later that day, Steve poked his head into Darcy’s office and said, “We’re all on for this Friday, right? Do you want to be the one to invite Natasha?”

“Clint isn’t?” She asked, surprised.

“He says, ‘I don’t want to die before I turn forty two.’” Steve made a face and then frowned at her. “You don’t think that Natasha will actually be that mad, do you.”

Darcy’s New Year’s Resolutions had included being less afraid of the people she lived with so she shrugged. “Probably not. Only one way to find out.”

Natasha and Clint were teaching cryptography, according to Darcy’s schedule, until 6 when they came home for dinner like everyone else. Even Tony came out of his lab dragging Bruce behind him for a team dinner. When they were home, they did try to act like the family they weren’t. The only person not around was Thor because his services were required halfway round the world. Jane looked a little sad while they were cooking the stirfry and Darcy elbowed her friend, giving her a smile in hopes of cheering her up. Jane smiled back and Darcy wished there was something more she could do.

“I’m just saying that research proves that positive reinforcement is a more effective teaching method,” snapped Clint as he came in.

The entire team stopped to watch him storm across the kitchen, yank open the freezer, pull out a bottle of gin and sit it on the counter. Natasha was behind him, looking nonplussed. She handed him two glasses he took from her, glaring.

“I think you baby them too much,” Natasha replied calmly. “You’re soft.”

“You think I’m _soft_ ,” echoed Clint, pouring gin into both glasses and they didn’t even bother with tonic water. He downed it in a gulp and glared at her. “ _S_ _oft_.”

“Yes,” Natasha replied, leaning against the counter.

Darcy looked at Steve who was frozen between stepping between them for the good of the team and letting this play out for the good of their partnership. Even Tony was speechless. Pepper and Jane shook their heads at Darcy.

Clint shifted on his feet. “I don’t like being called soft.”

Natasha’s smile was small and patient and to everyone’s surprise, she touched his shoulder as she picked up her glass of gin and walked past him. “It wasn’t meant as an insult.”

Clint stared after her. He looked at Darcy helplessly. Darcy just shrugged and said, “Hey, Natasha, did Clint tell you that the plans changed on Friday? We’re all going out. Do you want to come?”

Natasha froze, her face going pale. She swiveled and Clint held up his hands. Some unspoken communication passed between them and Natasha looked at Darcy. “No, I can’t. I’m not in the country.”

This appeared to be news to everyone but Darcy was secretly glad. She didn’t really want to die on Friday when Darcy brought Clint's daughter to his birthday party.


	4. Chapter 4

Darcy sat at a table, typing on her laptop (inane things, even she didn’t risk doing anything relating to the Team on an unsecured network. She was incredibly amused to see that Clint and Natasha had a name in the tabloids: Clintasha. _Clever_ , she thought, and tried to imagine a way that she worked it into a conversation and survived). She sipped at her peppermint mocha with extra whipped cream and kept a steady eye on the door. Sure enough, at a quarter of two pm on Wednesday afternoon, Emily Neal who should have been Emily Barton came through the doors. She ordered a vanilla soy latte and waited at the end of the bar, looking at something on her iPhone 5. Darcy vaguely wondered if Clint paid for Emily’s education and her phone.

Darcy figured she shouldn’t interrupt Emily when she was with her friends so she waited until coffee hour was over and Emily stayed, taking out her laptop and surfing the internet. Darcy wasn’t surprised to see Emily searching her dad’s name. It seemed like something that the daughter of an enigma would have to do to get to know her father in any way, shape, or form.

Darcy slid into the seat across from her and said quickly at Emily’s surprised and suspicious glare, “Hi, I’m a friend of your dad’s.”

She hadn’t seen the similarity between Clint and his daughter (he wasn’t particularly tall or willowy and his hair was light) until she met Emily’s suspicious eyes and found them to be the same flinty gray as Clint’s. Emily’s eyes glanced at the door over Darcy’s head. “I don’t think you are.”

Darcy grinned at her. “He’d be pissed if he knew I were here. I saw you in the Eagle the other night with him and told him I didn’t know that he had a hot date. You should have seen how flustered he was. My name is Darcy Lewis. I am the assistant for your dad’s classified group. I’m planning his birthday party.”

Emily sat back, staring at her. “I shouldn’t even be talking to you.”

Darcy matched Emily’s body posture and shrugged. “You’re right. You have no reason to trust me but notice that I didn’t say his name or your name here. I don’t want to be overheard and he’s worried enough about your safety. But I think that it’d make him really happy if you showed up.”

The girl tipped her head sideways, studying Darcy, still completely guarded. She shut her laptop and said, “What’s his preferred weapon?”

“A bow and arrow,” Darcy said and added, “If you’re trying to discern if I’m a friend, you might not want to ask a question that an enemy would know too.”

A ghost of a smile and Darcy knew that she was halfway through the door to Clint’s daughter’s closed world. “Alright. Where was he born?”

Darcy knew this and she knew it was classified. She smiled at Emily. “Good question. Waverly, Iowa.”

Emily’s smile was small and shy. She ran her fingers over the logo on the back of her computer. “You work with him?”

“Yes,” Darcy said, though the time she spent with Hawkeye was notably limited.

“What’s he like?” asked Emily softly. “With you. At work.”

Darcy wasn’t sure if the girl wanted to hear her father was a hero and if he was bossy and if he was a leader, or whether she wanted the truth. She finally said, “He’s funny. He’s quiet, but always warm, and always ready to give people second chances. He doesn’t ever say anything he doesn’t mean right down to the bottom of his heart. He’ll do anything for a friend.”

Emily’s eyes were a little glazed, a little distant. “Yeah. That sounds like him.” She sat up. “I didn’t even know his birthday.”

Darcy wasn’t surprised. She smiled and slipped a piece of paper across the table. “I know. Don’t worry about bringing anything for him. You’re his present.”

She got up and headed back to her table, checking over her shoulder to make sure Emily wasn’t calling Clint right away. The girl was fingering the piece of paper with a look of wonder. Darcy packed up her own bag and as she walked by, she gave Emily a lighter and said softly, “Burn after reading.”

Emily laughed, and Darcy heard the second way Clint’s daughter was like him. She left the café and sent Pepper and Jane a text: _Mission complete._

Jane: _I still think this is a bad idea._

Pepper: _I’ll add her to the reservation list. You’re responsible for the fallout._

Darcy: _Oh come on. He’ll be mad for like two seconds. He’s not going to have Natasha there. This is the way we can make up for his fake not girlfriend girlfriend’s absence._

Jane: _that doesn’t even make sense_

Pepper: _Is she nice?_

Darcy: _She’s darling. We need to invite her over for wine nights after this._

Jane: _You’re going to invite her to move in next._

Darcy: _There’s an idea._

Pepper: _We have the room._

Jane: _You two shouldn’t be allowed out in public._

 


	5. Chapter 5

Darcy wasn’t surprised at all to get a Facebook request from Emily Neal the next day and since Clint wasn’t on Facebook, she figured it couldn’t hurt to accept the request. She wasn’t surprised when Emily messaged her, but she was impressed.

 **Darcy Lewis**  
                        _Hey!_   
           

 **Emily Neal**  
                        _How do I know this isn’t a set up? I’m asking my dad about you_

 **Darcy Lewis**  
                        _You could but that’d ruin the surprise. Uh. Would it help if I had a picture of us together?_  
           

 **Emily Neal**  
                        _Yes._

 

Darcy should have known that Clint’s daughter would be inherently suspicious. Even if he wasn’t the one raising her, he would have instilled a solid fear of strangers in her. She should have been impressed that Emily hadn’t tasered her or pepper sprayed her right in the middle of the Starbucks.

She found a picture on their internal drive from the holiday drive of her, Jane, Natasha, and Pepper together with Clint popping into the frame to photobomb them. It had been a very long Christmas after he, Steve, and Thor had discovered the concept of photobombing. She figured it looked a little shopped, so she added the photo of Natasha giving her a dark glare, Clint not seeing the camera that Pepper was holding and gazing at Natasha, while Darcy was talking to him. It pretty much summed up Darcy’s experience with Clint: “I like you. But you’re looking at her.”

She closed the laptop in the meantime and went to find Jane who was still fighting with data. Bruce was trying to help her sort out what went wrong. Darcy sat on a swively chair.

“What do you need, Darc?” asked Jane, a little irritated.

“A dress,” Darcy said. She paused. “And you know, something to do. This self sufficiency thing you have going is not working for me.”

“You can watch that computer,” Bruce pointed across the room without looking in the same direction. “Make sure that you click “Approve” when the window pops up.”

Darcy figured she could handle that. She sat at Bruce’s desk and stared at the screen. The data made no sense to her but she was an IT person, an assistant, the jack of all trades and master of none, so she didn’t even try to understand it. She was paid, half by Stark Industries and half by SHIELD, to do whatever they asked and ask no questions. She wasn’t really good at not asking questions but she did what they asked, within reason, other than apparently, leave Emily Neal alone.

The box Bruce was waiting for appeared on the screen.

            NATASHA A. ROMANOV REQUESTING ACCESS TO SIRIX.EXE

            “What’s Sirix.exe?” asked Darcy curiously.

            “Just approve it, Darcy,” Bruce called from across the lab.

            Darcy clicked approve and promptly searched for it on Bruce’s computer. It led her to a file with photos, bios, and a floor plan of a house. It appeared to be some sort of crime boss in Albania. Boring. Darcy closed the file and went back to her desk and popped open her laptop.

            She had a message on Facebook from the one and only Emily Neal.

      **Emily Neal**  
                        _That looks right. Okay. I believe you. I memorized the address and the time. Is it fancy?_

            “Hey, Jane? Is dinner fancy?” asked Darcy.

            “Yes,” replied Bruce, eye rolling. “It was _supposed_ to be beers at a shoddy bar. But someone got us upgraded to a very fancy restaurant because they opened their big mouths.”

            Darcy grinned and waved her fingers at him. She was surprised to see him faintly smile. She shrugged and replied to Emily.

            **Darcy Lewis**  
                        _Yes, but don’t stress! Text me at XXX-XXXX if you have questions. Your name is on the reservation list._

 

            Clint came into the lab, on the phone. Darcy slapped her laptop down. Clint said to Bruce sharply, “You approved that access right?”

            Bruce looked at Darcy who said, “Yes! I approved it!”

            Clint went over to Bruce’s computer and opened a file. He sat down. “Yeah. Yeah. No. The east exit.” He stayed on the phone and the lab was quiet, Bruce taking off his glasses and walking quietly over to lean over Clint’s shoulder and watch the screen.

            Darcy held her breath and looked at Jane who shrugged, watching Clint and Bruce with a worried look.

            Clint exhaled slowly and said, a little harshly, “This is why you always take backup, Tash.”

            Bruce said quietly, “She’s done this type of thing a hundred times, Barton.”

            He was listening on the cell and something in his face abruptly softened and he ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “I know. I know. Get home safe.”

            He hung up. He said, mostly to Bruce, “We’re not doing that again. I don’t care if she’s done it a thousand times. Someone’s got to have a comm. on her.”

            “Okay,” Bruce agreed, placating him.

            Clint got up and stormed out of the lab without saying a single word to anyone else. Darcy looked at Bruce who was staring at his computer, lips pressed together, and then at Jane who looked worried, probably thinking about Thor on the other side of the world.

            Darcy said, “I suspect our bill is going to be heavily swayed in the alcohol category tomorrow night.”

 


	6. Chapter 6

Darcy hurried into the restaurant and grinned at her friends when she arrived at the table. Clint, Bruce, and Steve sat awkwardly on one side of the table. Jane and Pepper had their heads together and Tony was telling Pepper something which Pepper was ignoring, for now. Darcy took a seat next to Jane who glanced at her, rolled her eyes, and handed her the wine list.

            “We have an extra seat,” Clint observed, confused, picking up the menu now that Darcy who was the logical last person to arrive.

            “I think I forgot to take Natasha off the list,” Pepper said smoothly, winking at Darcy.

Bruce caught the exchange, lifted his eyebrow at Darcy who winked at him, and Bruce sighed, shaking his head. The table fell into an easy chatter about Tony’s latest toy, Steve’s trip to Chicago as part of an Avengers publicity tour, and Stark Industries testifying in front of Congress, again, regarding releasing Tony’s toys to the military. Darcy kept her eye on the door.

It was right after they ordered wine that she heard Clint curse softly under his breath from across the table. She looked up, saw him looking at disbelief, and she turned her head. She grinned. Emily was being led to their table by the hostess. She had her hair pulled back and wore a pretty, simple black dress. She looked utterly grown up and beautiful, and somehow her eyes stood out more and she smiled at her father, the same shy smile he gave people on occasion, and everyone at the table knew who she was.

“What are you doing here?” Clint asked her, standing up and looking around worriedly.

At the same time, Jane whispered to Darcy, “This is the part where I tell you that I love you as my best friend but when he kills you, I’m not stopping him.”

Emily’s eyes went down the table. “Darcy invited me. She said it was your birthday.”

Clint glanced at Darcy and then back at his daughter. He opened and shut his mouth, and then sighed, his shoulders slumping. “It is.” He reached forward and drew Emily into a hug. “Thanks for coming, sweetheart.”

She hugged him tightly back and they had some sort of quiet conversation.

Tony leaned forward to look at Darcy, “I admire your courage but I think maybe we should pick out your gravesite today. The Dangerous One still doesn’t know.”

Darcy shrugged, figuring Clint could handle his fake not girlfriend girlfriend problem woman. Clint shook his head at her as he offered the spare seat to Darcy. He called down the table, “You’re a pain, Darc.”

“Happy birthday, Clint!” she called back.

Pepper quickly raised her wine glass and said, “To Clint, happy birthday!”

“Happy birthday!” they all intoned and Emily added, her voice bright and young at the end, “To many more.”

Clint gave her a warm smile. “I hope.”

They fell into useless chatter, most everyone interrogating Emily about where she went to school (NYU), what she was studying (anthropology), whether she traveled (no—hey, Dad, can I?), if she had a boyfriend (Yes, said Emily, smiling, and yes her father had done a background check and insisted on meeting him and yes, he had cleaned a gun in front of her boyfriend before), and if she knew Natasha (of course, and no, she didn’t think Natasha was that scary).

Then Clint looked up again and leapt out of his seat. Half the table reached for weapons, but then Natasha appeared into view, her hair swept back and her eyes surprised as she glanced around the table. She had a faint cut on one cheek and was wearing a long sleeved cardigan that didn’t seem quite her style. Darcy suspected it was covering some other injury. Clint made some sort of pained noise and reached out with both hands, one catching her elbow and one touching the scratch on her face.

“Emily?” Natasha said faintly and she glanced at Clint, completely ignoring the look on his face. “What’s she doing here?”

“Birthday,” Clint said absentmindedly. He was pale, turning over her arm and pushing up her sleeve to expose purple bruises. “Tasha.”

“Where was she?” asked Pepper softly. “I didn’t even know she left.”

“Who the hell actually made contact with her?” Darcy replied softly, seeing that Natasha was actually moving a little stiffer than she normally did. How hurt _was_ she?

It was like they existed in their own world for a moment. Natasha softened and took his hand down from her face, squeezing it. She pulled her sleeve back down. “I’m fine. I’m home. Faster than expected too.” She leaned up and kissed his cheek briefly. “Happy birthday, Barton.”

She pulled away from him and Emily stood up, giving her a hug. Natasha said to her, grinning. “You’ve grown! How’s Jem?”

“In Greece,” Emily made a face. “Study abroad.”

“Aw, you’ll have to go visit. Greece is beautiful this time of year.” Natasha made a sympathetic noise that made Darcy choke on her wine. Natasha’s sharp eyes found her across the table. “Darcy, this wasn’t your idea, was it?”

Darcy paled a bit and took a sip of wine to make her brave. “Maybe.”

“You realize that See Something Say Something is a policy for counterterrorism and not for our lives, right?” Natasha asked as the hostess brought over another chair and place setting.

Darcy grinned. “It worked out alright. Just don’t kill me."

There was a shuffling of people as everyone rearranged so that Clint could sit between Emily and Natasha. Natasha and Emily had a conversation about Clint’s unshaven face and his tie over him, leaving him looking completely amused. He had an arm around either woman and he looked completely content. Darcy mused that he was probably the type of man who didn’t make mistakes too often, but he was flanked by his only mistake and his only failure, and he looked completely blissful.

“Mission success,” Darcy stage whispered to Pepper who clinked wine glasses with her.

Pepper said, “He looks happy.”

“So does Natasha,” Darcy noted. “And Emily.”

“You were lucky this time,” Jane said doubtfully. “And Natasha could still kill you.”

But later, as they were leaving, Darcy saw Clint press a kiss to Natasha’s temple and the redhaired spy leaned into him instead of pushing him way and Emily hooked her arm through her father’s as they walked down the sidewalk together. She probably wasn’t going to die at the hands of a teammate today.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, silly stupid fluffy story is over. Emily might be in a more serious fic at some point. I kinda like her.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :p

**Author's Note:**

> It isn't canon that Clint has a kid, and I don't write it anywhere else (for now?), but I like the idea that he has an adult daughter that he still keeps tabs on. That's all. That's allllll my fault, if it bothers anyone ;)


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